America: My Time

Chapter 126 Counterattack
Chapter 126 Counterattack

With two beautiful women by his side, John's mood was lifted and his life was enriched, gradually dispelling the oppressive feeling he felt. Before he knew it, the Spring Festival had arrived, the most important festival for Chinese people.

Early in the morning, John, Naoko, and Ye Qianwen all got up early to greet Anna and Smith. Anna and Smith had also prepared red envelopes, not only for John and his younger brother and sister, but also for Naoko and Ye Qianwen.

Faced with the unexpected red envelope, Naoko and Ye Qianwen were at a loss. Although it was just a thin red envelope, it meant a lot to them, and they didn't know whether they should accept it or not.

At this moment, John spoke up, "Take it!"

At John's urging, they excitedly accepted this red envelope, a truly meaningful gift for them, representing not only John's approval but also the approval and acceptance of John's parents.

John had a very pleasant Spring Festival. Everything went smoothly and there were no unexpected events. The second day of the Lunar New Year was also Valentine's Day. On this day, John put everything aside and accompanied Naoko and Ye Qianwen to walk in the mall. After Valentine's Day, they would have to leave. Naoko needed to continue her recording work, and Ye Qianwen was going to see her parents. The time for separation was coming, and before that, John chose to spend a wonderful Valentine's Day with them.

Valentine's Day has passed, and the start of the gold futures market is just one day away. John's moment is finally approaching. He's about to step forward and attract everyone's attention so that his gold futures plan can be implemented smoothly and he can reap the rewards without alerting anyone!

After seeing Ye Qianwen off, Naoko didn't rush to leave. The San Francisco Bay Area is very close to Los Angeles, so John kept her behind. She knew that the decisive moment was approaching, and she was under tremendous pressure. It would be good to have someone by her side, at least to calm her mind.

On the afternoon of the 15th, John finally appeared in front of the media, driving those media outlets that had been trying to contact him into a frenzy. They all wanted to know about the Motorola acquisition, and now they finally got the answer!

"Mr. John, what's your opinion on the acquisition of Motorola Research Labs? Many people are worried that this acquisition will affect fair trade and needs to be submitted to the Fair Trade Commission for review!"

"Hehe, my opinion isn't important. What's important is the law. This acquisition is entirely within the bounds of the law. I know many people are worried that Dream World will enter the personal computer industry and that their jobs will be in jeopardy. I can only say that they're worrying too much and are being petty. The personal computer market is huge; it's not something they can monopolize. I can tell them definitively that Dream World will not enter the personal computer manufacturing industry at this stage. They can rest assured. This acquisition is not from Dream World!"

"Mr. John, so the acquisition was completed by Nvidia Semiconductor. I wonder if Nvidia Semiconductor will also enter the CPU chip industry after this acquisition and continue to develop next-generation chips? What are your plans for Nvidia's development? Will Nvidia's expansion violate monopoly regulations?"

"Monopoly? I can only say you're overthinking it. Intel dominates the chip industry, and Nvidia is just a newcomer. How could it possibly have a monopoly? If we're talking about monopolies, it's only Intel. As for Nvidia's development, it's simple: focus on chip semiconductors. As for the memory industry, it will have some involvement, but overall, it will only do research and won't make any physical investments. After all, Nvidia is still very weak; it doesn't have the funds or the strength to do all that! Scientific research is what Nvidia is doing right now. As for turning it into finished products, that's not something Nvidia can do!"

"Mr. John, because of your acquisition of Motorola's research lab, Motorola is going to close its semiconductor factory, which will result in many workers losing their jobs. What are your thoughts on this?"

"As expected, those old guys still made their move, bringing up this big issue at this time. It seems they're still determined to destroy me!" Upon hearing someone raise this question, John immediately thought of those old guys who had been fighting against him. It was they who secretly leaked this information to the media, wanting to embarrass him in front of everyone!

"What I think is irrelevant. And you need to understand one thing: Motorola's plan to shut down its semiconductor plant was planned long ago. It has nothing to do with me. I won't take the blame, nor can I afford to. I can only express my sympathy for those unemployed workers!" "Really? Mr. John, didn't you ever consider acquiring the entire Motorola semiconductor plant and giving these workers jobs?" The reporter persisted, still targeting John and trying to cause him trouble!
"Heh, to your ignorant words, I can only say you're a hypocrite, only good at using empty moralizing to pressure people. Don't you know what the state of the semiconductor industry in the US is like right now? The entire industry is in trouble, and this isn't something one person can change. Since you sympathize with them so much, why don't you lend a helping hand and contribute your assets? As the owner of a company, I have to consider the livelihoods of my own employees. I can't drag my own workers into trouble and put them at risk of unemployment just because I sympathize with Motorola's workers. Asking me to acquire Motorola's semiconductor factory only shows that you have ulterior motives and want to harm my company's employees. You have malicious intentions!"

Faced with such a shameless scoundrel, John saw no need to save him any face. He laid everything bare, aiming to destroy him and leave him no chance to recover.

However, John underestimated the abilities of those old guys. These old guys had more than just this one pawn in their scheme. When they saw that Motorola Semiconductor couldn't influence John, someone else stepped forward and said, "Mr. John, is it true that you have an agreement with Morgan and intend to acquire Bell Labs?"

In an instant, the entire venue was shaken. This question shocked many of the reporters present. This was big news, huge news. What was Bell Labs? It was the most advanced laboratory in the United States and even the world.

"These old guys are really cunning and vicious. They even dare to reveal this question. It seems they are determined to make things difficult for me. Fine, I'll show you what I'm capable of and let you know that I'm not so easily fooled."

Thinking this, John smiled calmly and said, "I don't know where you heard this news from. It's not what you said, and it's a trade secret. The fact that you know such a secret suggests someone doesn't want me to acquire Bell Labs. Fine, I never had much interest in Bell Labs to begin with. If it weren't for Morgan's goodwill and our pleasant cooperation, I wouldn't have even considered it. Now we can tell you the truth: the so-called acquisition was merely Morgan's suggestion; I never agreed to it. Are you satisfied now? Don't worry about me acquiring Bell Labs, and don't worry about me having any monopolistic ideas!"

The reporter was stunned. He never expected John to say something like that. If he didn't have a mission, he would have been overjoyed to hear this news. It was big news. Now he was sweating profusely, realizing that he had messed things up!

"Mr. John, are you telling the truth? You and Morgan have such an acquisition intention. Bell Labs is the top laboratory in the United States. Are you really not tempted at all?" someone asked doubtfully, not understanding why John would reject Bell Labs. In comparison, Motorola Labs was insignificant.

"Morgan made this suggestion a long time ago, but I have never agreed. Bell Labs is indeed, as you say, the top laboratory in the United States and even the world. It is precisely because it is the top laboratory that it is difficult and unthinkable to acquire it. The reason why Bell Labs has such a reputation and such strength today is because it has the full support of Bell Labs. Do you know how much money it costs to maintain such a top laboratory every year? Although I have not seen Bell Labs' financial statements, I can draw an astonishing conclusion just from Nvidia's management. Bell Labs invests at least one billion US dollars in research funding every year. Do you think someone like me can afford that? Even if it were given to me for free, I would not dare to accept it. It is very difficult for anyone to take on a billion US dollars in research funding."

"Hiss!" In an instant, everyone was shocked. This was a billion dollars, and it required an investment of a billion dollars a year. Only a wealthy company like Bell could afford it. Such a laboratory was indeed beyond the reach of an individual. They all understood why John had refused; the terrifying cost was simply too daunting.

“I think Bell Labs should be nationalized, with the government bearing the cost of this investment. After all, much of Bell Labs' research is in basic materials science, which is difficult for companies to translate into products. Unrecoverable investment costs are unacceptable to any company. They might be able to manage for a year or two, but it's hard for anyone to sustain that long-term. In the US, I don't think many companies can do that; perhaps only the financial giants on Wall Street have that capability. You should ask them for help. This applies not only to Bell Labs, but also to Motorola's semiconductor factory. In the entire US, only Wall Street has that kind of capability!”

Those old guys wanted to shift the blame onto themselves, but John didn't hold back and countered by pushing the responsibility onto the financial giants on Wall Street, leaving those old guys to clean up their own mess.

The media of today is not like that of the future, and this was not a live broadcast, otherwise those old guys would have been cursing when they learned of John's counterattack. However, it won't be long before they find out everything.

John did offer them a way out, even giving them a good suggestion: nationalize the company and let the state shoulder this 'heavy responsibility'. However, this was impossible. The state wouldn't foot the bill for Bell Labs. Since the breakup of Bell was proposed by the conglomerates, they couldn't just take the lion's share and leave the bones for the state. If the conglomerates couldn't properly manage Bell Labs, the so-called breakup of Bell was just a fantasy!
Making things difficult for others isn't something only old guys do; John is also very skilled at it. This counterattack struck directly at the old guys' weak spot, and they will have to pay the price for their actions—a heavy price!
(End of this chapter)